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scotus will stay this if it goes there.....

And I don’t see an argument that can be made that the state Constitution is in violation of the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court doesn’t have jurisdiction over the PA Constitution unless it conflicts with the U.S. Constitution.

Of course they were well along in the appeal process, it was a federal case or so it seemed.

Supreme Court, greasing the skids for Bush to enter the White House.

the 3rd circuit found the maps partisan, but ok.

This is the PA Supreme Court ruling on the districts as applicable to the PA Commonwealth Constitution. The federal court doesn't have a say.

courts to decide. They're reportedly hoping SCOTUS will take it up, so does that mean they haven't yet managed to pack Pennsylvania's third circuit with new hard-core conservative appointees? Or that they have great hopes for the cases already before SCOTUS?

for the US Supreme Court to rule in the cases it has before it, but not a one of the 7 justices defended the map. I think when Rs on the state supreme court aren't even bothering to give their own party an out, it's not likely another court will either.

Anyway, since the decision was based solely on the PA constitution, there's no federal case. The per curium order went out of its way to point out the case was decided soley on the state constitution.

This isn't the first time this 2010 census based map was thrown out by the state courts either. It was ordered redrawn, but since the Rs controlled all 3 branches of gov't and used the same commission to re-do the maps, basically nothing changed.

I really don't know what the state GOP would even argue before in the federal courts, that they were harmed by having to draw districts in accordance with the state constitution?

I'm feeling nervous about all those cases SCOTUS is gathering and the big Wisconsin decision it's sitting on. A decision against us would mostly just uphold the current mess, but...

And they gave them a deadline to Feb 15 or they are going to submit their own map.

Another tool for us to use to move forward and REALLY make America great again (I know, but I couldn't resist........ )

Pgh Post-Gazette story: http://www.post-gazette.com/news/politics-state/2018/01/22/State-Supreme-Court-rules-Pennsylvania-congressional-map-gerrymandering/stories/201801220131

as why.

Yes, I know it says gerrymandering but the recent NC court decision appears to have created a new form of illegal gerrymandering: partisan.

So the PA judge could have ruled for racial gerrymandering (which is settled case law) or partisan gerrymandering (which is an open issue).

As to whether the Supreme Court has jurisdiction: as it involves a federal election, I would have to say yes.

The maps were found to be partisan, but ok. AFAIK the case has not been appealed. The state legislature has to draw maps in accordance with the state constitution, the state supreme court ruled they did not.
Before issuing this ruling, the state supreme court had remanded the case to the next lower court for fact-finding. The lower court judge did in fact find the districts were exceptionally partisan although he thought that was ok. However his opinion didn't count for anything because his job was to find facts on which the supreme court could decide the case. The state Rs fought tooth and nail from handing over the data they used to construct the maps, but lost. The statistical experts showed how randomly assigning precincts to form districts always gave a better balanced district that what resulted from the 2010 redistricting process.

This map was going one way or the other. There are two bills pending in the house and senate that would establish a new, non-partisan redistricting commission. The house version is co-sponsored by nearly half the state house and the senate version by more than a quarter of state senators. The only reason the house bill hasn't gotten a vote is because it's stuck in Darryl Metcalfe's committee and he won't allow it to be voted out.

If we can un-gerrymander just a few states we can hold the House indefinitely.

People don't even realize that Republicans hold an extra 20 seats in Congress because of clearly illegally drawn districts.

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Reading the Court's order, they found the Congressional Redistricting Act of 2011 (passed by the GOP-controlled state legislature and signed by Tom Corbett) to be unconstitutional and struck it down. Therefore, any maps drawn in accordance with this Act are unconstitutional.

Oh, and Sally Mundy, who campaigned as some kind of moderate, union-supporting Republican and fooled enough voters to be elected to a full term on the supreme courts showed herself to be just another GOP hack with her dissenting statement on the ruling.

Texas Supreme Court drew new voting district lines careful not to create any new districts or make any district newly republican or newly democratic. Having none of that in Texas the legislature redrew new districts adding more republican districts and doing away with democratic districts all just seven years before state law required districts to be redrawn (after each 10 year census). Texas rednecks suck.

Happy Blue Year Pennsylvania!

The Pennsylvania Republicans (Corman and Scarnati) have asked the state supreme court to stay its own order claiming voters would be confused by the new districts among other things. Reportedly this legal action is needed before the Rs can try to go federal court.

Corman is the state senate majority leader, Scarnati is the senate president pro tem. Scarnati's seat is pretty safe, but Corman represents Centre County (home to Penn State and State College). This is one of the fastest growing counties in the state and is becoming more consistently Democratic voting. With the right candidate and enough anger about the ridiculous gerrymandering, Corman could be beaten.